NEWS IN BRIEF / A summary of developments across Los Angeles County | Los Angeles | Community News File

Vigil Held for Woman Imprisoned in Peru

A candlelight vigil was held Monday evening in front of the Peruvian Consulate in the Mid-Wilshire district to protest the "wrongful imprisonment" of a New York woman who has been held in a prison in Peru for nearly two years on charges of aiding leftist guerrillas, organizers said.

Lori Berenson, 26, was convicted in January 1996 of treason and sentenced to life in prison without parole. Berenson, who has been incarcerated in Peru's Yanamayo Prison, is being held "in violation of international agreements and she had no due process of law," said Blase Bonpane, of the Office of the Americas, a human rights organization. "Her prison conditions are life-threatening," he said.

Office of the Americas said a letter was faxed Monday to Peruvian President Alberto Fugimori requesting Berenson's release.